It is unclear if anyone was inside the apartment at the time the blaze broke out. A resident in Apartment 8, 28-year-old Randy Banks, tried to use an extinguisher to fight the flames, which spread to a common attic, but was unsuccessful.

Firefighters had the fire out just before 4 p.m.

"We pulled the ceiling down and were able to cut it off," Granata said.

Damage were estimated at $60,000. Apartment 7, where the fire started, appears to be a total loss, Granata said. A woman and two children lived there.

Apartment 8 sustained smoke and water damage. It is not known if there were working smoking alarms in the apartment.